RESOLVING THE LEDGER
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French-Algerian football icon Zinedine Zidane became the new manager of France’s national football team on Tuesday, bringing an end to what little suspense there was over Didier Deschamp’s successor. Zidane frequently stated his desire to take over the French team and much of the football world supported his ambitions.
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French- Algerian football legend Zinedine Zidane expressed his hopes of becoming France 's head coach as early as 2022 in an interview with the sports newspaper L’Équipe.
His dream has now become reality: Zidane was appointed on Tuesday and will take over upon the departure of Didier Deschamps .
The president of the French Football Federation made little effort to keep the identity of the future manager a secret during an interview with the French newspaper Le Figaro in March. Without revealing a name, Philippe Diallo said that a new manager had been selected, adding that he had to be “someone who can tick many boxes [. . .] There must be a connection between the manager and the French”.
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Zidane had frequently voiced his ambition to take over the team. “When I say I want to manage France’s team one day, I mean it, he told L’Équipe on his 50th birthday in 2022.
More recently during an Adidas event, the legendary midfielder known as "Zizou" said he felt at home with the French national team, where he played for more than a dozen years.
“Of course, it's a dream and I can't wait.”
Zidane has long seemed destined to become France’s head coach, given his legendary success as a player for the team. “I want to come full circle with the French team. I have known the team as a player and it’s one of the best things that ever happened to me, ” he told L’Équipe.
Zidane played a total of 108 games for France, scoring 31 goals . Millions of people still remember his role in helping France win its first World Cup in 1998 with a 3-0 victory over Brazil , with Zidane scoring the first two goals.
Zidane is also remembered for losing his composure in the 2006 World Cup Final and headbutting Italian defender Marco Materazzi in the chest. His playing days came to an end with a red card delivered by a referee and a defeat against Italy (a 1-1 tie and later 5-3 in the penalty shootout).
Zidane forged his legend as a professional footballer, but he has also stood out as a coach. The transition from one role to the other wasn’t easy: of the six French players to have won the Ballon d’Or – Raymond Kopa, Michel Platini , Jean-Pierre Papin, Zidane, Karim Benzema and Ousmane Dembélé – Zidane is the only one to have successfully made the switch.
In 2016, barely 10 years after his retirement as a professional footballer, he became the main coach at Real Madrid after managing its reserve team Real Castilla and serving as assistant manager to Carlo Ancelotti. After joining Madrid, Zidane clinched an 11th Champions League trophy for the Spanish club. At the time, Zizou was only 44 years old; it was his first stint as a coach of a professional club. His achievements have yet to be matched.
The rest of the story belongs to football history: Real Madrid won two Champions League titles under Zidane in 2017 and 2018. In three years, he won three consecutive titles in the most prestigious European competition as well as two Spanish league titles (2017 and 2020), three Spanish Super Cups (2017, 2019 and 2020) and two European Cups (2016 and 2017).
Ancelotti praised his colleague in glowing terms after picking the reins back up at Real Madrid upon Zinedine's departure. “He won three World Cups. He did a fantastic job up until the last day. He knew success – but it’s football, a coach comes and another one leaves. What he achieved is incredible.”
The Spanish sports magazine Marca also celebrated Zidane’s achievements: “He is not only a coach leaving with an enviable record (11 titles, one for every 23 matches) including three consecutive Champions Leagues. An icon of the greatest club is leaving, a legend, an exemplary citizen of Madrid who made a flag out of simplicity, elegance and honesty, on and off the stadium.”
Out of management since leaving Real Madrid in 2021, Zidane had to wait for this moment to take over Deschamps' role. The previous coach set a record for the longest time spent at the helm of the French national team, with 168 games, 121 victories, 35 ties and 31 losses. Deschamps is leaving behind a solid and talented team, despite their elimination from the World Cup in a semi-final defeat against Spain (2-0) . As he begins his tenure, Zidane will rely on a core group of key players like Dayot Upamecano, Koundé, Adrien Rabiot, Aurélien Tchouaméni, Kylian Mbappé , Michael Olise and Ousmane Dembélé. Yet he also faces challenges, especially on the full-back positions and, to a lesser extent, central defence.
Zidane will also likely try to overhaul the coaching staff, beginning by naming World Cup champion Fabien Barthez as the new goalkeeping coach. The impact of Zidane’s coaching on Les Bleus remains to be seen. Supporters of the team will have to wait until October 2 to see the coach on the bench. Ironically, the match is against Italy – coming 20 years after Zidane’s loss to Italy as a player.
This article has been adapted from the original in French .
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